The Atlantic

Wait—Utah Is the Fastest-Growing State?

Yep, thanks to its high birthrate and attractiveness to immigrants.
Source: Jim Urquhart/Reuters

The report comes out every year, a bit of demographic horse-racery: Which U.S. state grew the quickest? It’s usually some sun-drenched locale, or more recently, an oil-drenched one—North Dakota and its shale boom have won for four years in a row. Texas is a perennial favorite among the Top 10. So is Washington, D.C., small and condo-hungry.

But this year, I clicked open the email from the U.S. Census Bureau to find the winner was… Utah?

Utah?

State population growth, 2015-2016 and 2010-2016

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic8 min readAmerican Government
The Most Consequential Recent First Lady
This article was featured in the One Story to Read Today newsletter. Sign up for it here. The most consequential first lady of modern times was Melania Trump. I know, I know. We are supposed to believe it was Hillary Clinton, with her unbaked cookies
The Atlantic3 min readCrime & Violence
Donald Trump’s ‘Fraudulent Ways’ Cost Him $355 Million
A New York judge fined Donald Trump $355 million today, finding “overwhelming evidence” that he and his lieutenants at the Trump Organization made false statements “with the intent to defraud.” Justice Arthur Engoron’s ruling in the civil fraud case
The Atlantic7 min readAmerican Government
The Americans Who Need Chaos
This is Work in Progress, a newsletter about work, technology, and how to solve some of America’s biggest problems. Sign up here. Several years ago, the political scientist Michael Bang Petersen, who is based in Denmark, wanted to understand why peop

Related Books & Audiobooks